


a love valiant and strong

by Forever_in_Your_Heart



Series: KibaIno Week 2016 [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, KibaIno Week, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-14
Updated: 2016-07-14
Packaged: 2018-07-23 22:15:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7481952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Forever_in_Your_Heart/pseuds/Forever_in_Your_Heart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>so let us chase our happily ever after</p>
            </blockquote>





	a love valiant and strong

_Once upon a time, in a land far, far away..._

Ino wasn't a princess, no matter how much she used to wish she was.

No white knight would ride to her rescue, no valiant hero would wear her favours into battle. There was no castle, no gallant stead, no happily ever after.

_...there was a girl who dreamed, dreamed in a thousand screaming colours of a world so brilliant it left her breathless..._

It was a lesson learned in the harshness of war, in the coldness of betrayal, in the tragedy of a broken heart. It was a certainty that came with the death of loved ones, with the unstoppable force of growing up.

_...but as this girl grew beautiful and bold, she realised the world did not match her dreams, was drowning in black and white..._

Sasuke betrayed them, left her jaded and nursing a sadness that ran deeper than a crush destroyed.

Asuma-sensei died, left her devastated and determined to improve.

Konoha was destroyed in a single blow, left her hurt and hardened all over.

Her friends, still young but not carefree, swore to take out Sasuke, themselves, as they always should have, left her sobbing and finally free of illusions.

War shattered her world, left her fierce and terrified.

Her father died, left her lonely but strengthened by heartbreak.

_...and though this at first gave her much sorrow, the girl was very brave, so she did not give up, did not abandon all her shining, shimmering dreams..._

Ino's life wasn't a fairy tale, but as life unfolded around her she realized she didn't need it to be.

Ino was no damsel in distress, needed no one to save her.

If it was a hero she needed, it was a hero she'd be.

_...she looked out at this world of gray and promised to make her dreams come true, even if she had to do it all alone..._

Ino walks through near-empty streets at the light of dusk, snug in warm June air and enjoys the tranquillity of the moment, so peaceful and calm.

This was what they'd fought and sacrificed for, lazy evenings and average days.

"Oi, Ino!" a voice calls from behind and she turns, sees Kiba and Akamaru making their way towards her. She smiles in greeting and he grins, warm and easy, makes her stomach do silly, fluttering things.

"I was just gunna stop by the BBQ place, you wanna come?" he asks as she tangles her fingers in Akamaru's fur, watches him with knowing eyes.

"Love to," she answers, doesn't heed the fear blooming in her belly like weeds, because life is about risks, about taking chances and maybe she'll get hurt, maybe her heart will break, but maybe it won't and that, she decides, is what really matters.

_...but she didn't have to do it alone, because the girl fell in love with a boy, a boy as brave and full of dreams as she was and they chased their dreams together..._

Ino plays her fingers absentmindedly over Kiba's bare skin, sweeps her eyes over his sleeping figure. His chest rises and falls slowly, he snores softly and Ino is enchanted, finds something powerful in this intimacy she can't explain.

It's been years and still, sleeping beside him makes her feel giddy and young again, heart beating with a love as fresh as the day it was born. Her wedding band glints in faint starlight, Akamaru snuffles loudly and Ino can feel it, the endlessness of possibility stretching out before them.

Ino remembers falling in love, the breathlessness of finding someone who saw the world the way she did. It was intoxicating, the way he kissed her, made her come alive with his fingers and it was invigorating, the way he laughed at her jokes, made her feel important no matter what she said. It was captivating, the way he looked and sounded, enchanting, the way he fumbled with compliments and blushed at her praise.

Ino remembers how her thoughts always found a way back to him, how she trusted him without realizing it, how she loved to listen to him talk, about everything and anything. She remembers how she always to wanted to make him smile, how she treasured every moment they spent together. She remembers falling into him, sinking into him without thought, because he understood her and she him, because he set her ablaze as she lit him up like the sun.

Ino remembers how perfectly they fit, in personality and body and she knows they still do, knows their adventure is still ongoing, a story without end.

_...and so the girl and her boy lived happily ever after._


End file.
